Quebec Premier François Legault announced Wednesday that he would resign after more than seven years in power, triggering a leadership race and further upending the province's political landscape with only months to go before the fall provincial election. Legault told reporters at a hastily-called news conference in Quebec City that he would remain in his position until a new leader...
Denmark and allied countries said Wednesday they will increase their military presence in Greenland as part of expanded exercises, amid intensifying pressure from Washington over the Arctic island’s sovereignty. “Security in the Arctic is of crucial importance to the Kingdom and our Arctic allies, and it is therefore important that we, in close cooperation with allies, further strengthen our ability...
Despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest actions in Venezuela and ramped up rhetoric about acquiring Greenland, both of which have renewed speculation from some about Trump’s American expansionism goals, experts say an attempt to annex Canada using military force is “far-fetched.” On Jan. 3, Trump launched a military operation in Venezuela, during which U.S. troops captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro...
Prime Minister Mark Carney's visit to China appears to have been greeted by Chinese media with less fanfare than Justin Trudeau received in 2016. Carney's arrival in Beijing on Wednesday was greeted by a three-paragraph article in state news service Xinhua, which urged the Canadian leader to take the visit as an opportunity to increase dialogue, "advance mutual political trust"...
Bonnie Crombie resigned Wednesday as leader of the Ontario Liberal Party, months after saying she would leave following a tepid leadership vote in the fall. She initially said she would stay until a successor is chosen, but has now decided on an early exit. "As we begin a new year, I believe this is the right moment for me and...
Nanos conducted an RDD dual frame (land- and cell-lines) hybrid telephone and online random survey of 1,077 Canadians, 18 years of age or older, between December 27th and 29th, 2025, as part of an omnibus survey. Participants were randomly recruited by telephone using live agents and administered a survey online. The sample included both land- and cell-lines across Canada. The...
The Weekly Nanos Tracking is produced by the Nanos Research Corporation, headquartered in Canada, which operates in Canada and the United States. The data is based on random interviews with 1,000 Canadian consumers (recruited by RDD land- and cell-line sample), using a four-week rolling average of 250 respondents each week, 18 years of age and over. The random sample of...
Even before Mark Carney headed off to China this week, he got several sharp reminders of challenges that will be awaiting the prime minister when he comes home. They come from outside the country and inside it too, and none of them are easily fixed.
What do you do about a superpower you don’t trust but can’t afford to ignore? Prime Minister Mark Carney will hope he can find the answer to that puzzle during his visit to Beijing this week. Canada is caught in the crossfire between a Trump administration that has veered sharply towards protectionism and a Chinese regime whose actions are often...
Former Montreal mayor and federal cabinet minister Denis Coderre has filed for bankruptcy protection, seeking relief from nearly $1.1 million in debt, according to documents released by the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy. The documents show Coderre sought protection on Jan. 6 and cited "illness, death, divorce, biopsy and media harassment" as reasons for his financial difficulties.
Former Ontario MP and former NDP leadership candidate Charlie Angus says that leading the party is not an "entry level position" and he's endorsing Alberta MP Heather McPherson for the job. Angus made the statement in a video message that was shared with The Canadian Press prior to its release. "Let's be blunt. The last election was a catastrophe. I...
Every mayor in Canada learns this lesson quickly: the problems that land on your desk are rarely abstract. They arrive as phone calls from small business owners or families whose sense of safety has been shaken. In Peel Region, extortion has become one of those problems. It’s no longer isolated or sporadic. And it’s no longer something municipalities can solve...
A major geopolitical fault line shifted Saturday morning, as the United States arrested Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro after a quarter century of socialist tyranny. This is a good thing. Canada did not recognize Maduro as the legitimate president of Venezuela, and with him out of the way, we hope that Venezuelans will finally be able to enjoy freedom and democracy...
Not too subtle: On the eve of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit, China’s state media warned that if Ottawa wanted progress in relations, it had to adopt a foreign policy separate from the United States. “If Ottawa still chooses to subject its China policy to the will of Washington,” the China Daily said in an editorial, efforts to mend ties...
Suppose — just suppose — that in 2026 Canada’s federal-provincial relations continue to deteriorate under the mismanagement of the Carney government, that a clear majority of the citizens of Quebec or Alberta actually threaten to vote Yes on a clear secession question, and that the reactionary anti-development positions of several provincial and First Nations governments (like those of B.C.) continue...
With less than nine months to go before a scheduled Quebec election, Premier François Legault has responded to pressure from both his polls and his party, announcing his withdrawal from the field, leaving Quebec politics in flux and his party pondering the odds of a provincial Mark Carney saving the day. In some ways, we can draw parallels between Legault’s...
François Legault’s resignation does not just change the leadership of the Coalition Avenir Québec. It changes the election. That might sound like spin, but it reflects a basic truth about how voters actually make choices. Most people do not carry around detailed policy scorecards. They carry impressions. They rely on shortcuts. And the most powerful shortcut in politics is the...
On his way to Beijing, Prime Minister Mark Carney will have to fly past Japan, a country being bullied by its largest trade partner, China. It’s something Canadians might want to consider as their Prime Minister heads to Beijing to reset relations. Canada wants to get back on track. But there is always a country on the outs with Beijing...
It’s very apparent the Metlakatla won't back any new developments until Ottawa addresses their anger over a questionable propane contract One oil spill would destroy a way of life, is what Marilyn Slett said she told Mark Carney when he visited Prince Rupert, B.C. to discuss conservation and economic opportunities in the region.
Which is the most ludicrous part of the Trump administration’s attempt to portray the chairman of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, as a criminal? Is it the suggestion that the distinguished 35-year public servant somehow took it into his head, at the end of a career unmarked by any previous stain on his integrity, to try to smuggle a $2.5-billion...
When an individual falls victim to the sunk cost fallacy, the consequences that follow are generally even worse. Maybe it’s an extra few thousand wasted on a rust bucket of a car just to feel like the money invested in it wasn’t for nothing. Maybe it means staying in a bad relationship that ought to have ended years ago. Maybe...
It is rare that a provincial opposition party leadership race has the potential to shift the national dialogue on a fundamental issue for the country, but that could be about to happen in British Columbia as the official opposition B.C. Conservative Party leadership race gets underway this month. Let me unpack this a bit. For those not from B.C., politically...
The first two weeks of 2026 have been … a lot. Rumours of expansionism, annexation and war have dominated the news cycle — thanks to U.S. President Donald Trump’s need to cause global confusion.
“Contrary to media reports, Canada is not considering a ban on X.” So tweeted Evan Solomon recently, Canada’s Minister of AI and Digital Innovation, in response to reports that the British government was trying to convince its allies to ban the service after it was discovered that Elon Musk’s Grok AI (available on X) was being used to create and...
IN RECENT YEARS, Canada has conducted major Arctic exercises to reinforce its sovereignty over the North. Those operations tend to reveal the same fragility: specialized equipment dependent on foreign manufacturers and logistics chains stretched across borders and oceans. The flag may be Canadian. The infrastructure, often, is not.
For 80 years, the main anchor and principal architect of the “rules-based” cooperative order has been the United States. Now, in a reversal begun in Donald Trump’s first term and accelerated in his second, the US is abandoning that role. This is not just episodic isolationism. This is aggressive unilateralism, directed also toward America’s closest allies. Former Secretary of State...
Canada has not considered the United States a military threat since the mid-19th century. Such tensions appeared to be settled, if not ancient, history – until now. The US capture of President Nicolás Maduro, coupled with President Donald Trump’s broad assertions of US dominance across the Western Hemisphere – including ominous hints about seizing Greenland ‘the hard way’ – have...
Twenty-five guns. That’s all the federal government collected in a recent pilot project in Nova Scotia for its new “buyback” (aka expropriation) program for prohibited firearms. “A total of 25 prohibited firearms, turned in by 16 participants, were destroyed,” spokesperson Noémie Allard said Friday. “The total compensation paid to pilot participants is $26,535.”
Canada is offering to contribute military assets to a multilateral force being proposed by Germany and Britain to boost NATO’s presence in Greenland, government sources said. One official said that Prime Minister Mark Carney raised with allies the issue of reinforcing the Arctic, including Greenland, when he was in Europe last week. “We welcome the German and British plan and...
It was New Year’s Eve, so Claire did what millions of others do on any given day. She snapped a selfie.
Never one to let pass an opportunity to promote her pet project, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith penned a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney a few days ago urging him to speed up approval of the proposed pipeline that would go from Alberta to B.C.’s northwest coast. Her reason? All that Venezuelan oil the Americans stole threatens to take a...
President Donald Trump's spectacular extraction of narco-dictator Nicolás Maduro doubtless terrified other American foes, including the mad mullahs of Tehran. It will have dramatic geopolitical consequences if it hastens the departure of the Iranian theocrats who have supported international terrorism and brutalized their long-suffering people...
To shamelessly steal from the memes, there’s a dictator that needs to be dealt with. He’a a convicted criminal and a power-hungry cartoon who tried to steal an election to gain power. He stomps on human rights and turns his army against his own people. This is United States President Donald Trump. Unfortunately, Trump’s American military took out the leader...
Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit to China marks a significant milestone in this country’s relations with Beijing. It signals Ottawa’s intent to improve a strained relationship at a moment when Canada is also navigating threats from the Trump administration. From Ottawa’s perspective, the objectives are clear and pragmatic: explore trade and investment opportunities, and ease trade frictions, especially China’s tariffs...
Dedicated to those who are continuing the fight against tyranny around the world, and those who have died in the struggle. The French philosopher Blaise Pascal is famous for his sharp aphorisms. One of my favourites is this: “Justice without force is powerless. But force without justice is tyranny.” I quoted these words in a Policy piece in 2022 after...
It has been an alarming start to 2026, thanks to Donald Trump. In just seven days, Trump’s America has plucked a leader out of Venezuela and hauled him to the U.S. to face justice and seriously revved up its intents to acquire Greenland. At home, Trump’s decision to install federal immigration agents in U.S. cities has escalated into violence —...
Federal departments have started notifying public servants that their jobs may be impacted by workforce adjustments, as the federal government begins to implement its plans to cut 28,000 jobs over the next four years. Statistics Canada confirmed on Monday that it will cut 850 positions over the next two years, including 100 positions eliminated immediately this week, and Shared Services...
Following the recent U.S. military intervention in Venezuela, a new poll suggests almost a third of Canadians say the United States might attempt "direct action" to take control of Canada. It suggests one-in-five Americans think the same. The poll, which was conducted online and can't be assigned a margin of error, surveyed 1,540 Canadians between Jan. 9 and Jan. 11.
Quebec Premier Francois Legault said he was confident his province would find a "win-win" energy deal with Newfoundland and Labrador as he announced his resignation today. Legault told reporters he believes a tentative agreement struck between hydro utilities in the two provinces was already a win for both governments.
Prime Minister Mark Carney landed in Beijing on Wednesday as his government seeks to rebuild Canada's fractured relationship with China in its push to expand non-U.S. trade. The trip marks the first visit by a Canadian prime minister to China in eight years, following a lengthy period of damaging diplomatic and trade tensions. Those issues prompted the Liberals in 202...
Swedish firm looking to manufacture aircraft for Canadian and international markets. The Canadian Armed Forces would need to buy 72 Gripen fighter jets and six GlobalEye surveillance aircraft for Swedish manufacturer Saab to deliver on its pledge of creating 12,600 jobs in Canada, CBC News has learned.
As the prime minister travels to China this week in a bid to reset the fractured diplomatic and trade relationship, critics and diaspora groups are accusing his government of slow-walking the long-awaited foreign influence registry to prioritize economic concerns over safeguarding Canada’s democratic institutions. “If this government is looking to move forward with expanding trade with China, they need to...
U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement on trade is "irrelevant" to him and Americans don't need Canadian products. "It expires very shortly and we could have it or not," Trump said while touring a Ford plant in Michigan. "It wouldn't matter to me. I think they want it. I don’t really care about it." Trump statements...
Around Christmas time in 2004, Mark Wiseman’s phone rang. It was a deal maker in Asia who was leaving the local office of U.S. private equity firm Carlyle Group to start his own buyout firm in Seoul. The caller had the local knowledge and contacts, but needed capital. Wiseman, who led the private equity fund at the Ontario Teachers’ Pension...
German submarine builder ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems is partnering with Canadian AI company Cohere to bring its technology aboard Canada’s next fleet of submarines, should TKMS win the multibillion-dollar contract. The agreement is part of TKMS’s promise to integrate Canadian companies into its supply chain for the project, bringing the industrial benefits to the country that Ottawa is asking for...
Canadian farmers are hoping for a breakthrough on punishing tariffs as Prime Minister Mark Carney talks trade in China this week. Rick White, president of the Canadian Canola Growers Association, says Beijing's steep levies on the major Prairie crop will cost producers at least $2 billion this year if the issue isn't resolved. "Farmers are already frustrated. They're exasperated, they're...
Coastal First Nations president Marilyn Slett says she called on Prime Minister Mark Carney in a meeting Tuesday to maintain and protect the oil tanker moratorium in his government's pipeline talks with Alberta. The meeting between Carney and Coastal First Nations in Prince Rupert, B.C. was held to restart relations with the advocacy group, which works to protect the B.C...
VANCOUVER -- Political commentator Caroline Elliott has confirmed she will be joining the race for leader of British Columbia's Conservative Party.
An impaired driving trial against Orléans Coun. Matthew Luloff is scheduled to begin Monday after a provincial court judge dismissed his bid to have the matter stayed or withdrawn because of delays. The councillor — whose last name is misspelled Lulloff in court records — was arrested July 6, 2024, and charged three days later with operating a vehicle while...
Labour leader Rob Ashton has raised concerns about AI replacing workers. Despite being concerned artificial intelligence is replacing workers, NDP leadership candidate and union leader Rob Ashton used AI during an online campaign event on Sunday. Attentive users of the discussion platform Reddit noticed several of Ashton's responses during his AMA (short for "ask me anything") seemed like they had...
Prime Minister Mark Carney leaves Tuesday for a nine-day trip that will see him circle the globe to drum up investment and trade in three places that have attracted the scrutiny of voters. His visit to Beijing -- the first trip to China by a sitting prime minister in more than eight years -- will be followed by a stop...
Statistics Canada says it will be cutting around 850 of its staff along with 12 per cent of its executive team. Carter Mann, spokesperson for the national statistical agency, said Statistics Canada will inform affected employees within the next two weeks. Data from the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat shows 7,274 people worked at Statistics Canada as of March 31...
As Google, Meta, and other American-owned big-tech firms pervade Canada’s media landscape, Ottawa is considering reviewing the CBC’s mandate in an effort to strengthen cultural independence and further protect the country’s democracy, political players say. And, according to opposition critics, former CBC officials, and cultural advocates, an update is desperately needed. A lot has changed since the federal government last...
Justice Sheilah Martin says she will retire from the Supreme Court of Canada effective May 30. Martin says in a statement today she is deeply grateful for the opportunity to have served Canadians on the high court, calling it an honour and a highlight of her professional life. Chief Justice Richard Wagner praised Martin as widely respected for the depth...
Growing numbers of Canadians struggle to care for children and aging parents while also holding down full-time jobs. A majority of unpaid caregivers have reduced their work hours or sidelined their career ambitions to support aging family members. Trying to balance full-time work with care demands often leads to leaves of absence, lost income, and burnout. In 2022, StatCan found...
Prime Minister Mark Carney is in Prince Rupert today to meet with Coastal First Nations to discuss major projects in northern B.C. A unnamed government official told CBC News Monday the meeting is intended to address projects underway and potential partnerships between the federal government and Indigenous communities in the region.
Debt writeoffs by the federal government climbed above the $5-billion mark during the last fiscal year, according to figures reviewed by The Globe and Mail, adding to a debate over Ottawa’s practice of keeping the identities of those who benefit from such debt relief secret.
China will propose easing some restrictions on Canadian rapeseed products during a visit to the country by Prime Minister Mark Carney, provided his government relaxes tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles. The Chinese authorities plan to discuss the proposal with Carney on his official visit this week, according to people familiar with the matter, asking not to be identified as they’re...
An Indian gang accused of extortion and murder-for-hire in Canada has been “acting on behalf of the Indian government,” according to an RCMP document obtained by Global News.
As Canadian leader Mark Carney arrives in China on Wednesday, his hosts see an opportunity to peel the longtime U.S. ally away from their rival, at least a bit. China's state media is calling on the Canadian government to set a foreign policy path independent of the United States -- what it calls "strategic autonomy." Canada has long been one...
A regional director with the Manitoba Progressive Conservatives had his board position and party membership suspended Monday after posting a social media message that appeared supportive of ICE — the immigration enforcement agency in the United States. Patrick Allard is also banned from running as a candidate in the next election, Tory Leader Obby Khan said. "This party does not...
The Trump administration is putting pressure on Canada to end a boycott of US-made alcohol that’s hurting distillers. Most Canadians want their governments to hold firm.
As Prime Minister Mark Carney gears up for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping this week – the first visit to the country by a sitting prime minister since 2017 – an expert warns that the stakes are high and hypervigilance is advised. Carney announced the trip last week, saying that the decision was made because Canada is looking...
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe is set to join Prime Minister Mark Carney on a visit to China this week. Moe says they'll be meeting with Chinese officials to discuss the trading relationship between the two countries. That relationship has been rocky of late, with Saskatchewan feeling the brunt of high Chinese tariffs on canola products that were implemented after Canada...
The federal Conservatives are accusing the Liberals of rewarding "Beijing's intimidation" after some parliamentarians on a trip to Taiwan decided to return earlier than planned. Two Liberal MPs say they are leaving Taiwan "informed by advice from the government." The parliamentary delegation to Taiwan, which includes MPs from multiple parties, overlaps with the prime minister's trip to China.
Two government ethics experts say federal rules need to change to prevent members of Parliament from holding more than one public office at a time, after Chak Au continued to serve as a municipal councillor in Richmond, B.C., when he was elected a Conservative MP. Mr. Au has served as a city councillor since 2011, and was first elected federally...
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- A federal three-judge panel on Wednesday allowed California to use a new voter-approved U.S. House map that is designed to boost Democrats in the 2026 midterms.
Denmark's foreign minister said Wednesday that a "fundamental disagreement" over Greenland remains with President Donald Trump after talks in Washington with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
NEW YORK (AP) -- It's only two weeks into the new year, and President Donald Trump has already claimed control of Venezuela, escalated threats to seize Greenland and flooded American streets with masked immigration agents.
President Donald Trump posted Wednesday on social media that anything less than U.S. control of Greenland is "unacceptable," hours before Vice President JD Vance was to host Danish and Greenlandic officials for talks.
As Canadian leader Mark Carney arrives in China on Wednesday, his hosts see an opportunity to peel the longtime U.S. ally away from their rival, at least a bit. China's state media is calling on the Canadian government to set a foreign policy path independent of the United States -- what it calls "strategic autonomy." Canada has long been one...
As questions mount about the stability of the Iranian regime, Canada has condemned Iran for killing and arresting citizens protesting the government and the high cost of living. In a joint statement issued with Australia and the European Union on Friday, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand praised the bravery of peaceful protesters and attacked Iran's use of lethal force. The...
Two Canadian MPs from the governing Liberal caucus have cut short a trip to Taiwan this week that would have overlapped with Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit to Beijing aimed at patching up relations with China. They say they are returning home early “informed by advice from” the Canadian government. Liberal members of Parliament Helena Jaczek and Marie-France Lalonde were...
Two London residents with roots in China say they'll be paying close attention to this week's visit to China by Prime Minister Mark Carney. Both see the trip as a first step toward improving what has been a complicated trade history between the two countries in recent years.
Mark Carney is headed to China, where he's set to meet with President Xi Jingping. It will be the first visit to China by a Canadian prime minister since 2017. There is some optimism heading into this meeting. The biggest issues on the table are China's restrictions on Canadian canola products and Canada's tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. Much of...
Prime Minister Mark Carney will travel to Beijing from January 13 to 17, marking the first visit by a Canadian prime minister to China since 2017. The trip comes amid mounting economic and political pressure from the Trump administration and reflects the Carney government’s stated objective to diversify Canada’s economic partnerships and double non-U.S. trade over the next decade. At...
Lisa Van Dusen: Senator Boehm, that was quite a year. Between the trade war, Donald Trump’s renewed undermining of multilateralism, and the geopolitical implications of American degradation — I think Trump’s recent National Security Strategy may have summed it up best as a capstone to 2025. How do you see Trump II, Year One? Sen. Peter Boehm: In foreign policy...
A collection of SubStack publishing within Canadian public affairs.
Library and Archives Canada (LAC) gets a lot of flak for its processing of Access to Information Act (ATIA) requests, especially for its long delays to respond. But lately they’ve been doing a few things right.
A thorough media scan reveals practically no discussion about this important escalation, which would put Canada among only a few Western navies (the United States, the United Kingdom, and France) that operate submarine-launched land-attack weapons.
You may want to dust off your Bescherelles, Canadian politicos: the battle for the future of Québec is where things are going to happen in 2026. In case you missed it, today the new leader of the Québec Liberal Party, Pablo Rodriguez, announced his resignation. His resignation was precipitated by a terrible, scandalous month for the QLP — one that...
It's a "Reporter's Notebook" Tuesday with The Economist's Rob Russo and The Toronto Star's Althia Raj joining forces again to give us what they're hearing as the Prime Minister heads to China. Mark Carney is trying to reset the relationship with China.
Mark Carney arrives in Beijing today to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping. It’s the first time in nearly a decade for a Canadian Prime Minister to do so, and the stakes are high. Carney has to balance his handling of two problematic superpowers during these talks. On the one hand, he wants to double non-U.S. exports abroad in the...
Protests in Iran ramped up over the weekend after the Islamic Republic regime – ruled by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei – instituted an internet and phone blackout. But despite this, reports started to come out about a crackdown. On Tuesday, an Iranian official said the death toll, composed of both protesters and security personnel, was over 2,000 people.
Chrystia Freeland, the former cabinet minister and Liberal leadership contestant whose resignation letter was the final nail in the coffin of Justin Trudeau’s prime ministership, finally vacated her seat in the House of Commons last week. As Mark Carney tries to find his way to the magic number of 172 seats needed for a majority government, he now has one...
